Easel, card holder, or the like



May 23, 1933. G H JOHNS 1,910,548

EASEL, CARD HOLDER, OR THE LIKE Filed Aug. 25, 1931 li atentecl May 23, 193?;

UNITED STATES PATENT oFFIcE GEORGE E. JOHNS, OF NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGJETOR OF ONE-HALF EEO ADOLPH PIERSON, OF EAST HAVEN, CONNECTICUT EASEL, CARD HOLDER, OR THE LIKE Application filed August 25, 1931. Serial No. 559,193.

This invention relates to easels, and more particularly to a device for supporting cards, photographs, menus or the like, and for performing not only the function of supporting such devices, but also that of beautifying or decorating them.

It is usual in the making of display or show cards, for example, to letter and ornament the cards individually, each usually having some ornamental figure or design painted or inked thereon in addition to the lettering or the actual useful part of the card. When it is desired to substitute for this card another one having different lettering or advertising a different product, it is, of course, necessary to make an entirely new card which entails the reproduction of the ornamental or beautifying portion as well. These cards constitute more or less an eX- pensive item, and the expense would be greatly reduced if the ornamental portion of the card could be preserved and only the lettering changed.

One object of the present invention is the provision of an easel or device for supporting cards or the like which shall be formed or made with an ornamental portion so that the card used with the easel need only contain the actual lettering or useful information, the ornamental features being supplied by the easel. When this card is replaced by another the new card will, of course, be ornamented and be useful in the same manner as the old.

Another object of the invention is the provision of an easel for supporting cards or the like which may be economically and cheaply made and which will at the same time be efficient in use and present an attractive and ornamental appearance.

7 Another object of the invention is the provision of an easel having a card-supporting portion and an ornamental portion so arranged that the easel can be associated with or secured to the card to be supported in various relations.

To these and other ends the invention consists in the novel features and combinations of parts to be hereinafter described and 5 claimed.

In the accompanying drawing:

Fig. 1 is a front elevational view of an easel or card holder embodying my invention;

Fig. 2 is a side view of the same;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view on line 3-3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is an elevational view of a pair of easels supporting a card;

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. A but showing the easels in reversed positions with respect to the positions shown in Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a front elevational view showing a pair of easels supporting three cards;

Figs. 7 and 8 are elevational views showing other arrangements of the easel members;

Fig. 9 is a side elevational view of the structure shown in Fig. 8, with a card supported in the easels,

As shown in Figs. 1 to 3 of the drawing, the easel consists of a front ornamental portion 10, a rear wing or bracing portion 11, and a card-supporting portion disposed between the two parts 10 and 11. This cardsupporting portion may be said to consist of three plies of material, a front ply 12, which is in the plane of the ornamental p01 tion 10, an intermediate ply 13, and a rear ply 14:. These plies are reversely folded so as to form therebetween the card-receiving channels 15 and 16.

As shown more especially in Fig. 3, I prefer to form each of "the easels from a single piece of material, preferably sheet metal, which will be formed or bent to provide the parts heretofore described. The wing or sustaining portion 11 will be turned rearwardly from the rear supporting ply 13 at substantially right angles thereto, and as the plies 12, 13 and M are substantially parallel and the ornamental or face portion of the easel 10 is a continuation of the ply 12, this face portion will be disposed at substantially right angles to the wing or sustaining portion 11. As shown in Figs. 1

and 2, the easel will sustain itself with the face portion in a substantially vertical or nearly vertical position by means of the contact with a supporting surface of the lower edges of the wing and face portion.

The face portion of the easel may be ornamented in any desired manner. One Very effective method of ornamentation is that shown in the drawing wherein there is provided a lower corner or quadrantal portion 17 from which extend radially the diverging sections 18, 19, 20 and 21, the whole presenting a futuristic effect.

These portions 17, 18, 19, 20 and 21 may be given contrasting colors and one portion may be further distinguished from the other by offsetting the metal slightly at the dividing lines between the portions.

The easels are preferably made and used in pairs, the two members forming a pair, being duplicates except that they will be oppositely faced or will be rightand lefthand units. On account, however, of the fact that oppositely facing channels are provided in each of the easels, each may be used either at the right or left-hand side of a card. For instance, as shown in Fig. 4, the easel of Fig. 1 is shown at the right-hand side of a card 22, the edge of the latter standing in the channel 16. The opposite edge of the card will, of course, stand in the corresponding or rear channel of the mating left-hand easel. In this instance the ornamental portion of the easel is for the most part disposed at the side of the card and does not overlap or cover the lettering thereon.

As shown in Fig. 5, however, the easels have been reversed with respect to the card 23 and the form of easel shown in Fig. 1 is now positioned at the left-hand side of the card, the latter being positioned in the channel 15 and the ornamental portion 10 of the easel overlying the surface of the card. In this position the ornamental features of the easel will appear to be painted or applied directly to the card. In Fig. 6 of the drawing, I have shown a pair of easels having a card 24 supported therebetween in the channel 16 and each easel also having a card 25 supported in the channel 15 thereof, so that in all three cards may be carried by the two easels. The same arrangement may, of course, be made with the easels standing in reversed position, as shown in Fig. 5. In this instance the card 23, of course, stands in the channel 15, but the channel 16 of each of the easels may at the same time be used to support an additional card. In Fig. 7 of the drawing a pair of easels are shown disposed with their bases 17 in abutting relation and with the wing or sustaining portions 11 lying fiatwise or horizontally disposed upon a support. In this position the channel 15 faces upwardly and the card 26 may be disposed and supported therein. In Figs. 8 and 9 of the drawing I have shown a shelf 27 with a pair of easels disposed on the edge thereof whereby the wing or supporting portion 11 lies flat on the upper surface of the shelf and the face or ornamental portion 10 overlies the front edge of the shelf. The easels may be used in this position to-ornamentor set off various articles which may be on the shelf 27, or they may be secured in this position and a card 28 carried in the channel portion 16, and, in this position may serve, of course, to ornament the card as in the uses illustrated in the other figures of the drawing.

While I have shown and described a preferred embodiment ofmy invention, it is to be understood that it is not to be limited to all of the details shown but is capable of modification and variation within the spirit of the invention and within the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. A self-supporting easel member comprising a three-ply standard forming oppositely facing narrow channels between the plies thereof to receive and support a card or the like, a wing or sustaining portion extending rearwardly from the rearmost of said plies, and a front ornamental portion comprising a continuation of the front one of said plies and said wing portion supporting the easel member with the channels facing laterally to engage the side edges of a card or like member supported thereby.

2. An easel or card-holding device formed of a member of sheet material, comprising a relatively long and narrow ornamental face portion, the material at one edge of said portion being bent upon itself to form a narrow card-holding channel, and then reversely bent to form a second similar cardholding channel facing in a direction opposite the first channel, and said member being then turned at substantially right angles to the ornamental face portion to form a supporting wing to support the easel with the channels extending upwardly from the supporting surface.

3. An easel or card-holding device formed of a piece of sheet material comprising a face portion having a straight edge and an ornamental serrated edge, the piece of material at the straight edge of said face portion being bent upon itself to form a narrow card-supporting channel with the rear side of the face portion and then being reversely bent to form a second narrow cardsupporting channel facing in a direction opposite said first channel, and said piece of material then being bent at substantially right angles to said face portion to support the easel in a substantially upright position with said channels facing laterally.

4. An easel or card-holding device formed of a piece of sheet material comprising a face portion having a straight edgeand an ornamental serrated edge, the piece'of material at the straight edge of said face portion being bent upon itself to form a narrow card-holding channel with the rear side of the face portion and then being reversely 5 bent to form a second narrow card-holding channel facing in a direction opposite sai first channel, and said piece of material then being bent at substantially right angles to said face portion to support the easel, the

1 portions of said material between the bends thereof being of substantially the same width whereby the rear supporting portion extends rearwardly from the straight edge of said face portion, and the edges of the sup- 1 porting portion and face portion at one end of the easel lying in the same plane.

5. An easel having a front ornamental face portion, and a rear wing or sustaining portion lying in a plane at right angles to 2 the face portion, and having oppositely facing card-holding channels between said portions, a side edge of the face portion lying inv the plane of the wing portion, and the edges of the face and wing portions at one end of the easel lying in the same plane.

6. A pair of easels each constructed as described in claim 1, with the corresponding channels thereof facing in opposite directions to form right and left hand supporting members for a card or the like.

7 A pair of easels each constructed as described in claim 1, with the corresponding parts of said easels being reversed to form complementary right and left hand supporting members.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this 24th day of August, 1931.

GEORGE H. JOHNS. 

